Apparatus for feeding folded paper tubes or the like



March 1, 1927.

E. ENGSTROM APPARATUS FOR FEEDING FOLDED PAPER TUBES OR THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Shea;

Filed April 27, 1926 WITNESSES ATTORNEYS E. ENGSTROM APPARATUS FOR FEEDINGFOLDED PAPER TUBES OR THEILIKE March 1 g Filed April 27 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 656? 5 2'5 28 6,6 i :4 g; 1 6'6 69 2o g5 .55 so i 4 4'6 '2 a n s o 3 6 0 A0 a 5 60 29 W m D WiTNESSES I INVENTOR (/oCI MWM W Elmer En qsirorn/ 1475 va w g I BY ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 1, 1927.

P'E'E FFICE.

EL'MER ENGSTROIE, OF SOUTH vvrrvnr-inm, CONNECTICUT.

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING FOLDED PAPER TUBES OR THE LIKE.

Application filed April 27, 1926. Serial No. 105,023.

The apparatus of the present invention, while primarily designed for feeding flat paper tubes into a bottoming, or other bag finishing or printing machine, is well suited for a wide range of utility in the arts, and is adapted for feeding practically any type of paper sheets or similar material.

An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this character which is adapted to remove one sheet at a time from the bottom of a stack of sheets, and to withdraw the sheet from the bottom of the stack in such a manner that there will be no sliding contact between the sheet Which is with drawn, and the sheet immediately thereabove.

In a. preferred embodiment of the invention, a series of stacked sheets are disposed in a hopper. Approximately one half of a rotating turntable constitutes the bottom of the hopper. Theturntable is radiallyslotted at any suitable number of points for the passage of a sheet from the upper to the lower side of the turntable. Separating tongues are provided at the slots in the turntable, and suction devices automatically draw the corner of the lowermost sheet downwardly and pass it under one of the separating tongues. Continued revolution of the turntable serves to separate the lowermost sheet from the stack Without causing any relative sliding movement between said lowermost sheet and the stack. After the turntable has been rotated through a predetermined distance, the lowermost sheet will drop under the turntable either on to a suittable conveyor or on to some other receptacle where some operation on the sheet is to be performed.

. Preferably as the sheet passes under the turntable it is received between a pair of feeding rollers which are turning at the surface speed of the turntable so that the sheet will be positively separated from the pack without sliding relative thereto.

Preferably also the turntable is equipped with antifriction rollersfor supporting the main stack of material to be fed and relieving friction between the turntable and the bottom of the stack.

Other objects of the invention are to provide an apparatus which will be rugged and durable in use, which will combine simplicity of construction with automaticity of fully understood from the following de-' scr ption in connection with the accompanymg drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a paper feedmg apparatus embodying the present inven tion.

- Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view there through.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional detail through the suction roller and associated parts. r i

Fig. 4c is a similar view, but showing the turntable moved to a slightly advanced position. I n the drawings I have not attempted to lndicate in full the frame work of the ma chine, but have only shown the particular portions of the frame work which mount the turntable, the hopper or frame, and an end roller of. the endless conveyor on to which the sheets removed from the hopper are deposited.

As best seen in Fig.1 the frame of the machine includes a vertical frame bar formed with a bearing 11 which mounts the drive shaft 12 of the machine. Drive shaft 12 carries a bevelled driving pinion 13 coacting with a crown gear 1% to drive a vertical spindle 15 to which the crown gear is rigidly connected as by a set screw .16. A bearing sleeve 17 for the spindle 15 forms part of the frame work of the machine, and may be carried on a vertical standard 18 connected to frame member 10 by a cross piece 19. A turntable 20 is mounted on the spindle 15, and the upper reduced end 21 of the spindle is borne in a block 22 rigidly secured to the upper end of the frame member 18 at a point above the spindle.

Preferably the block 22 is directly bolted to a vertical. gauge plate 23 which constitutes the stationary side Wall of a frame which receives the stacked sheets of material 24L to be fed. The ends of the gaugeplate are in turn directly secured to the frame member 18 in any appropriate manner (not shown).

The gauge plate is disposed approximately diametrically of the turntable 20, but slightly to one side of the center thereof, so that nearly half of the turntable extends under the gauge plate and constitutes the movable bottom for the sheet retaining hopper or frame.

It will be noted that the frame member 10 at its upper end mounts a longitudinal slotted frame bar 26. Vertical corner standards 27 and 28 are formed with horizontal extensions 29 at their lower ends overlying the rail 26 and adjustably secured to this rail by screws 30 working through the slot 31 in the rail and wing nuts 22 coacting with the screws. The extensions 29 are also longitudinally slotted at 38, so that by adjusting the screws 30 and the wing nuts 82, the angular corner piece-s 27 and 28 may be moved toward each other, or may be shifted inwardly toward the stationary gauge plate 23.

In Fig. 1 I have indicated in dotted lines at 3% the smallest sized sheet which may be conveniently received by the gauge plate 23 and the corner pieces 28, and have shown in full lines the corner pieces adjusted to ac commodate a maximum sized sheet of material. It will be noted that this sheet has one edge abut-ting the gauge plate 23 and the corners received in the angular corner pieces 27, 2-8. The largest sized sheet which can be accommodated is of a length approximately equalto the diameter of the turntable, and of a widthslightly less than the radius of the turntable.

Supported at one end in the frame work of the machine, and at the other end in any approved manner, is an endless conveyor 35. A roller 36 is journalled between the frame members 10 and l8 and constitutes one support for the endless conveyor. Means is associated with the turntable 20 for removing the lowermost sheet of the stack 25, passing it through the turntable, and delivering it on to the endless belt 35. It is to be understood however, that the particular disposition which is made of the sheet after its removal from the stack is immaterial to the present invention, and that I have simply illustrated the endless conveyor as one sheet handling apparatus which may be used for carrying the sheets 25 to a distant point. In practice when the machine is used for feeding collapsed paper tubes, the belt '35 will carry the individual tubes to a bota mechanism by which four sheets are de-' livered from the stack to the conveyor upon each revolution of the turntable. It is to be understood that the number of sheets which are fed will depend altogether upon the particular use to which the apparatus may be put, the rate of revolution of the turntable and other factors which must be determined in the case of each particular use to which the machine is put.

The turntable is provided with four equally spaced radial slots The turntable is rotated in a counter clockwise (il'i'CC- tion, and the material near the outer end of thefollowing edge of each slot provides a separating tongue il sharply bevelled at on its under face as best seen in Fi, 2. 3 and 4. Mounted'in'imediately adjacent each slot 4:0 beneath the surface of the turntable is a suction roller 41d of fr" ti-o conical shape, the tapered sides of the roller being coincident with two radii of the turntable. The rollers at their inner ends are borne in bearings 4-3 and at their outer ends rotate upon the inner ends of hollow cylindrical blocks 44- secured in recesses in the outer edges of the turn table by set screws 46. The hollow vlindrical blocks 45 are integrally closed at inner ends and closed by plugs 47 at outer ends. The blocks are formed with lateral air ports 48 adapted to register with similar radial ports 49 in the rollers when the rollers have been rotated to proper position. Y

The hollow interiors of the cylinders 45 are adapted to be connected through branch pipes 50 to a main air pipe 51 stationarily axially mounted within the hollow spindle 15 of the turntable. Any suitable iueans (not shown) is used to create a. suc ion in the air pipe 51, consequently in the cylinder 45 of the rollers 44 whose pipe 50 is aligned with-the port 51 of the air pipe 51. W hen this suction is produced in the cylinder its associated roller will have been rotated to align the ports as and 49 and there will be a draft of air inwardly through these ports. Port 51'is arranged to register with a pipe 50 whose associated roller is under the edge of the stacked sheets, whereby to pneumatically draw down the corner of the lowermost sheet 25.

Means is provided for rotating the rollers 44 in their bearings at the same surface speed as the speed of the turntable 20, and

the size of the rollers 44 is such that they will complete a revolution to every quarter revolution. of the turntable. The movement of the rollers i4: is so timed that whenever one of the separating tongues 41 reaches the position shown in Fig. 3, the ports 48 and 49 will be aligned, and the pipe l5 of the roller will register with port 51 and the corner of the lowermost sheet 25 of the stack will be pneumatically drawn down and passed under the edge of the separating tongue, this sheet being drawn between the roller 44 and a cooperating friction roller 4. A paper sheet feeding mechanism including a turi'itable, a frame arranged above the turntable and laterally supporting a stack of sheets which rest on the turntable, said turntable having a radial slot therein, a separating tongue at the following edge of the slot, a suction roller for drawing the corner of the low ermost sheet downwardly under the separating tongue, and a friction roller coacting with the suction roller to positively grip the corner of a sheet as it is fed under the supporting tongue.

5. A paper sheet feeding mechanism including a turntable, a frame arranged above the turntal'ileand laterally supporting a stack of sheets which rest on the turntable, said turnta is having a radial slot therein, a separating tongue at the following edge of the slot, a suction roller for drawing the corner of the lowermost sheet downwardly 7 under the separating tongue, and a friction roller coacting with the suction roller to POSltiVGlj grip the corner of a sheet as it is fed under the supporting tongue, said suction roller and turntable being mechanically rotated at the same surface speeds, whereby the lowermost sheet of a stack may be separated from the body of the stack without being laterally displaced relative to the body.

6. A paper sheet feeding mechanism in cluding a turntable, a frame arranged above the turntable and laterally supporting a stackof sheets which rest on the turntable, said turntable having a radial. slot therein, a separating tongue at the following edge of the slot, a suction roller for drawing the corner of the lowermost sheet downwardly under the separating tongue, a spindle for rotating the turntable, and means for rotating the suction roller at the same surface speed as the turntable.

'Z. A paper sheet feeding mechanism including a turntable, a frame arranged above the turntable and laterally supporting a stack of sheets which rest on the turntable, said turntable having a radial slot therein, a separating tongue at the following edge of the slot, a suction roller for drawing the corner of the lowermost sheet downwardly under the separating tongue, a spindle for rotating the turntable, and means for rotating the suction roller at the same surface speed as the turntable, said last mentioned means including a gear reducing train actuated from the turntable spindle.

8. A device of the class described in claim wherein the turntable is mounted on a tulVlng spindle, and an air suction line is housed within the spindle and placed in communication with ports in the suction roller as said roller passes under the edge of the stack.

9. A paper sheet feeding mechanism including a turntable, a frame arranged above the turntable and laterally supporting a stack of sheets which rest on the turntable, said turntable having a radial slot therein, a separating tongue at the following edge of the slot, means for drawing the corner of the lowermost sheet downwardlyunder the separating tongue, whereby said tongue separates the sheet from the remainder of the stack upon continued rotation of the turntable, and friction rollers mounted in the turntable and supporting the weight of the stack.

ELHER ENGSTROM. 

